N.J. Gov.-elect says struggling cities to no longer receive state aid

Amanda Brown/The Star-LedgerNew Jersey Gov.-elect Chris Christie speaks to the Star Ledger editorial board in Newark in October.Gov.-elect Chris Christie said today he will cut off state funding to struggling cities, saying they must cut spending and no longer rely on Trenton.

But before Christie takes office, the state is set to give about $72 million to Camden, Bridgeton, Union City and Paterson in aid designed to keep property taxes from rising while maintaining basic government services.

Christie also said cuts to the $1.5 billion in regular give-backs to cities and towns across the state are "on the table" as he prepares a painful budget due March 16.

The state budgeted $141.9 million this fiscal year in aid for struggling cities and towns, down from $170.3 million, but Christie said he is putting municipalities "on notice" the money will not be there at all next year.

"You better budget based upon what you can raise, because we don’t have the money to continue over and over again to shovel out extraordinary, special municipal aid to municipalities who have not responsibly budgeted, no matter where you’re located in the state," he said. "The state can no longer be your court of last resort. We are broke."

The programs targeted are designed to help towns and cities keep property taxes lower while still maintaining services, with "extraordinary aid" aimed at municipalities with short-term problems and "special aid" for longer, structural problems, said Susan Jacobucci, chair of the local finance board and director of local government services in the Department of Community Affairs.

Bridgeton, for example, a town where the average income is $31,000 and the average home is worth $58,000, is asking for $2.5 million. Mayor Jim Begley said the Cumberland County seat has been making progress, seizing property from people who do not pay taxes and lowering the police force’s target payroll. The next step would be closing libraries and senior citizen programs. But he doubts the new governor will be able to practically cut payments completely to cities such as Camden.

"Chris can say that, but I don’t see them going full turkey on towns of that size," said Begley, a Republican. "It’s always easy to say that somebody’s not doing their job when you haven’t walked in their shoes, and you haven’t made those determinations."

Republicans have long attacked the special and extraordinary aid as political gifts to Democratic strongholds. Assemblyman Joseph Malone (R-Burlington) said it had to stop.

"It’s the same old nonsense again and again, no matter what the people say," he said. "As long as we continue to subsidize mismanagement and corruption and bad municipal practices, it won’t stop."

Jacobucci said the cities served are the state’s poorest, with large populations and few sources of tax income. She could not say precisely how much of the budgeted aid has already been released or how much was left.

"In many cases the cities would have to shut down if they didn’t get this special municipal aid," she said. "It’s wrong to say that you’re giving money to towns that are mismanaged or corrupt."